The clubs and LegaSerie A have been adamant the investigation is into certain agents and not the clubs themselves.

“We don’t call it a bribe, but the comparison is apt,” Palermo President Zamparini told Radio24.

“We are not victims as such, but the clubs have to adapt to the system. If to sign a player you have to go through a certain door or you’ll lose him, in the end you do go through the door. That is the system, but the system is what’s wrong.

“I would compare the situation of clubs to a manager put in prison because he had to sell helicopters to India and if he didn’t give a percentage to the Indian go-between, the helicopters wouldn’t get sold.

“Unfortunately, the clauses in most contracts now say you have to pay the agent a certain amount.”

The investigation by the authorities in Naples is to ascertain potential tax fraud and even money-laundering.

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